IRON GAME HISTORY
The Roark Report
Chuck Sipes
ittle Chuck was watching Big Chuck. About 1948, when
Chuck Coker, who would later, in 1961, be in on the
founding of Universal Equipment company, was work-
ing out hard and regularly in his Modesto, California
garage gym, he often noticed a young man who
would pause at the end of Coker’s driveway to
observe the exercises. So, at the age of 16, Chuck Sipes was
invited into the gym to learn the iron.
William Sipes, Chuck’s father, recalls that Chuck was
underweight in high school and wanted to add some size so he could
play football. Later, of course, Chuck would run over other body-
builders on world class competition playing fields.
Charles Harry Sipes was born August 22, 1932 to William
and Evelyn Sipes in Sterling, Illinois. Bill and Evelyn were married
July 2, 1927, and their first son, Bill, Jr., had come along two years
before Chuck arrived.
Little Chuck became big Chuck in more ways than the obvi-
ous bodybuilding way. His marriage to Mary on September 1, 1952,
would yield three daughters: Daphne, born July 19, 1954, Kathy,
December 22, 1955, and Patricia “Trish” in 1962.
Daphne recalls an incident when as children she and Kathy
were storming through the house playing and they crashed into the
shelf holding their father’s bodybuilding trophies. The storm calmed
instantly as they pondered the response Dad would have when he
arrived home. They cleaned up the broken and scratched trophies as
well as young girls could, and waited. Chuck arrived, was told of
the mishap, and called his daughters to him. Hugging them he said,
“No problem, they’re just trophies. We can get them repaired.” A
temperament such as this, and years of the same loving attitude, now
causes Daphne to feel, “He gave me, his daughters, unconditional
love. He loved us no matter what. He was very tolerant.”
But when the boys came courting later, and got a glimpse
of the man-monster, as Daphne called Dad, the boys didn’t like to
hang around the house too long-perhaps thinking that Chuck’s mus-
cularity was coupled with acute mental awareness of their intentions.
Nonetheless, once the boys got to know Chuck, they relaxed, though
perhaps not fully, wondering how to treat the daughter of a man who
easily ripped phone books into halves and bent iron rods. Perhaps
the young men thought that this father’s actions were indeed speak-
ing louder than words...
Norm Komich is among those who called Chuck Sipes a
very close friend. Norm remembers first meeting Chuck, whose 19
inch arms were relaxed, as he sincerely asked Norm to be specific
in detailing how he had build his own arms (to about 15 inches).
This other-person-oriented interest would be with Chuck through-
out his life.
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VOLUME 2 NUMBER 6
After Norm returned from Vietnam, he drove to visit Chuck
that same night and knocked on his door at 3 A.M. Chuck, who was
not expecting Norm, welcomed him as though it were 11 AM. and
he was expected.
Chuck cared enough about other people’s problems to spend
20 years with the California Youth Authority (C.Y.A.), retiring in
1988. His main function was to take troubled inner-city youths into
the mountains of California for about four weeks at a time. Bill
Sipes remembers his son’s technique. Chuck would walk the young-
sters around in circles for about a week to get them feeling lost and
to lessen thoughts of escape. By the beginning of the second week,
the young men would start to let their feelings out-stories detailing
sad conditions which had contributed to the boys’ current situations.
This therapy was successful. The superintendent of Folsom Prison
once noted that 96% of the young men whom Chuck treated in the
wilderness never returned to jail. Ninety-six percent.
Other mountain hikes were for fun and exercise. Norm
recalls trips into the mountains and workouts involving cables, which
would be tied around trees and then stretched in various exercises.
Their conversations around campfires on such outings were the under-
pinnings of a lifelong friendship, and now, when Norm speaks of
Chuck, it is with warmth, love, respect, and bewilderment as to what
changed Chuck’s outlook later in life.
After a month in the woods, Chuck’s bodyweight often
decreased by 15 to 20 pounds, and Norm remembers the amazing
transformation Chuck could undergo in regaining the lost weight and
muscle. He simply ate more and lifted. No drugs, according to Norm,
Chuck began his competitive bodybuilding career unwill-
ingly. Chuck Coker recalls that when Sipes was a lifting competitor in
his junior college days in Modesto, there was one occasion when a
physique contest was held in connection with the lifting. Chuck’s bud-
dies on the team filled out an entry form to the physique contest, then
informed Chuck that he had to get up on stage and pose. He said no at
first, but then did sort of a stroll across the stage and hit a few poses.
Soon, he gave up competitive lifting to specialize on his physique. In
his prime, his forearms may have been the best in the world.
In December, 1932, Strength & Health magazine began,
but Chuck would never appear on its cover. In 1940, when Chuck
was eight, Joe Weider began his publishing career, and later Chuck
would appear on several Weider covers.
By 1958, Chuck was into his early competitions, placing
third at the western sectional of the Junior Mr. America contest in
Portland, Oregon. Ray Routledge won and Earl Clark was second.
The placings for the most muscular award were in the same order.
The following year Chuck won the IFBB Mr. America title. By 1961,
he was the IFBB Mr. Universe, and he competed in the second and
MAY 1993 IRON GAME HISTORY

third Mr. Olympia contests in 1966 and 1967. He was, by then, writ- he had been doing for years and in which he captured the beauty of
ing for Joe Weider, and had started his AMERICAN BODY- his beloved mountains, was not enough to sustain him. Chuck was
BUILDER’S CLUB, which cost a dollar to join. growing despondent against the best efforts of his true friends and
I was in the audience on September 25, 1968, in Miami his family. Chuck Coker, who is still involved in the physical fitness
Beach, Florida, when Chuck won the 1968 Mr. World contest. As field, tried to reach Chuck by phone to offer him a job talking to young
odd as it sounds now, the audience was welcomed onto the stage fol- people at high schools about physical culture. Unable to get through
lowing the contest. This was also the evening, you may on the telephone, Coker wrote what would turn out to be
recall, that a rough-cut physique from Austria was an unanswered letter offering the job. But Sipes,
competing against the finished form of Frank after receiving the letter, told his father that he
Zane. Chuck who was a judge at that section simply did not want to be a burden to any-
of the show, voted for Zane. one. This was 1992.
A couple of years after this Also that year, Chuck and
contest, Chuck was rooming with Mary would travel to Massachusetts
another world famous bodybuilder for a six month visit with Daphne
overseas during a posing exhibi- and her husband. Also living in
tion. Chuck walked into their hotel that state is Norm Komich, with
room and found the other body- whom Chuck attended the tenth
builder with a needle in his butt. annual meeting of the Olde-
Chuck asked what was going time Barbell and Strongmen
on and was told, “Oh, you have Association in New York
to do this to compete these City.
days.” No, Chuck did not have In November, Chuck and
to, and the following year he Mary returned home to
wrote an article in Muscle Weed, California. It was
Training Illustrated entitled, about this time that Chuck
“HELP! DRUGS ARE saw his parents for the final
DESTROYING MUSCLE- time.
MEN.” What causes a man, who
He retired rather than cheers up everyone, to change so
take the large amounts of steroids that he cannot be cheered up by
that were being used. Two years those he loves? Big Chuck was
later, 1972, Daphne recalls that she becoming little Chuck inside him-
accompanied her father on an across self. A man whose family loved him,
the country trip to Annapolis Naval whose artwork was respected, whose
Academy where Chuck was to speak on cell-mates (so to speak) became sell-mates
physical fitness. She remembers the pride she and are forever in his debt, whose stupendous
felt upon seeing her father speak in other cities on strength and physique accomplishments were no
the way to the academy. longer able to re-kindle his former bright attitudes.
Chuck began bodybuilding as a clean athlete, and as he And, for whatever reasons such an evolution takes place,
became aware that steroids were becoming really widespread, he lost it took place, and Chuck decided to say farewell on February 24 of
some interest toward it. His job with the C.Y.A., in the final years, this year. And no one was watching.
was negatively influenced by some bureaucratic snafus which thwart- Chuck is buried in his beloved buckskins in Sunset View
ed some of the rewarding trips he had previously made into the moun- Cemetery in Jackson, California, about 50 miles from the gym he
tains. One suspects his interests in this part of his life lessened also. used to run in Modesto. Norm spoke the eulogy, the mountains were
As the years passed, those close to Chuck began to notice near, and Chuck became part of the 96% who would not return to
changes in him which were not positive. Even his painting, which whatever demons imprisoned them. —Joe Roark

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